A Simple Touch
by elohimdancer319
Summary: Birhday gift for a friend. Luka is back from the Congo, but he and Abby still have some things to talk about. One shot Luby.


Disclaimer: I don't own these characters or ER, NBC does.

This is a one- shot that takes place during "Shifts Happen" in Season 10. I wrote this for Jenny, a friend of mine, for her birthday. I'm not sure this is any good (I don't have the creative skills to come up with something from scratch), but I hope you like it. Happy Birthday!

A Simple Touch

Abby was nervous as she approached Luka's apartment. It was late- but Gillian had invited her for dinner. She wiped sweaty palms on her jeans and knocked on the door. There was a brief second, as she waited for someone to answer, that she wondered what the hell she was doing here. He had a girlfriend; she was just the friend. But she'd missed Luka, and not Carter, while he was in Africa. There was a time, after they broke up, that she thought they might get back together. It had never happened, but maybe now was that time. Luka answered, his face opening in a smile as he recognized her.

"Hi!" She ignored the part of her that said her smile was too bright, that she was too happy to see him.

"Hey." He looked at her as if to ask 'what are you doing here.'

"Figured I owed you a visit." Luka checked his watch and looked back at her, eyebrows raised.

"It's 10 o' clock."

"And… Gillian invited me for dinner." As she explained her presence, Gillian walked up behind Luka, bags in hand. Seeing Gillian again reminded her why she and Luka couldn't be together, why things would never work between them.

"I didn't think you'd take me up on it."

"Oh." She never should have come; all she had done was embarrass herself. Gillian invited her in anyway, explaining she had to go. Abby stood there, feeling like she was intruding on their private moment, as they kissed and said goodbye. Abby was a little confused as they watched Gillian walk away.

"Where's she going?" Abby asked as they entered the apartment.

"Uh, back to Montreal." Luka said closing the door. "Her boyfriend's been bugging her to go back."

"I thought you too were..."

"Nah, it's complicated." Abby followed Luka to the kitchen, where he was pulling the Thai leftovers out of the fridge. "Still hungry?" Luka looked at it and made a face.

"Umm… not for that. "

"Good, I'm in the mood for something less… oriental." Luka said, his eyes smiling along with his mouth. It was nice to see him like this, to see him happy. Before Africa, he had become a shadow of his former self. It was as though he was missing a piece of himself. And now? He was alive again. It was this Luka- this complete Luka- that made Abby smile in return. They started for the door.

"Don't say that too loud." Abby cautioned as Luka locked his door.

"Why?" Luka whispered.

"You might upset your Vietnamese neighbor. Does he still live there?"

"I'm not sure actually. After his extended family moved out, it's been rather quiet." They laughed as they headed down the stairs. Over dinner they avoided the topic of Africa and Carter. She was still smarting over how _that_ particular relationship had ended. It had been over for a long time, she was glad at least that one of them had the courage to finally end it.

Instead they talked of lighter things.

It wasn't until they were walking along the river, much like their first date had ended, that Luka confirmed what Abby had sensed about him. He'd found a new perspective…

"You glad to be home?" She finally found the words to ask about what had happened to him, what had changed him. She watched his face as he talked, still a little pale from his battle with malaria and still fresh with the horror of what he had survived. Abby hadn't yet heard the details, but she didn't need to in order to understand that life was a struggle in the Congo.

"Yes and no. You're not in your own head all the time. You're apart of something that's in constant motion over there. Any break you get from it is a luxury; not jus something to be taken for granted." There was such a passion in his voice when he spoke. He really loved it out there. Abby just hoped Luka wouldn't abandon her again, as Carter had done.

"And that's different from County, how?" Abby asked with a smile on her face. Behind the teasing, she took to heart what Luka said and wished she was at the place he was. She was making an effort to find that confidence he had about him for herself. Medical school was a big part of that, of realizing who she was without all the labels life had handed her.

Luka did his one arm shrug. "It's its own addiction, I suppose."

"Yeah, it's certainly hooked Carter." Abby fought to keep the bitterness and hurt out of her voice.

"Yeah." He paused before approaching his next question, it was a prickly subject for Abby and understandably so. He struggled to ask purely as a concerned friend. "How are you doing with that?" He looked over at her, unsure now that he had brought it up. I struggle

"Without him, you mean?' She questioned, tucking her hair behind an ear. It was her turn to shrug. "I'm fine." She mentally winced as her voice rose an octave. He was watching her, not really believing what she was saying. She controlled her voice a little better as she tried to assure him. "I'm better than fine."

"So you're happy?" Luka asked, skeptical. All he wanted was for Abby to be happy, whether or not it was with him. Gillian was a nice distraction, but Abby had always held his heart. She gave him a look accompanied by a little laugh.

"Getting there." She looked away, briefly, before turning back to him. She wasn't happy now, but with her next words she attempted to convince both of them that she could be. "I've made a few decisions." Luka watcher her face, attempting to figure out what was going on beneath her calm exterior.

"Like what?" Abby pursed her lips, as she decided whether or not to tell him, and shook her head.

"I don't want to jinx myself." He nodded, not wanting to push. Abby had always needed to sort things out on her own, without help. It was what she was used to: independence. He offered her support in the tiniest brush of his fingers against hers.

"You'll figure it out, I have faith in you." Luka took her hand and pulled Abby into an embrace. It was the same way he'd hugged her just before he left for Africa. Abby melted into him, Luka's touch somehow making her battle with life more bearable.

"Thank you, Luka, for always being there." She whispered once they pulled back. Luka smiled at her, softly brushing her cheek with the back of his fingers.

"Just as you've always been for me." He said softly. Abby took his hand from her face and held it with both of hers. She stepped closer and he met her halfway in a soft kiss. It lasted only a few seconds, but for them it was enough. Luka and Abby stood there together watching the river in a comfortable silence. They had never needed many words, and now was no exception. A simple touch said it all.


End file.
